Kaleb Coleman sparks Team M.O.A.M. to AAU victory

Kaleb Coleman, shown dunking for Oak Ridge in the Pioneers' high school basketball state championship game victory in March, led Team M.O.A.M. 2019 to an AAU silver bracket championship on Sunday.

Kaleb Coleman, shown dunking for Oak Ridge in the Pioneers' high school basketball state championship game victory in March, led Team M.O.A.M. 2019 to an AAU silver bracket championship on Sunday. (Stephen M. Dowell / Orlando Sentinel)

KISSIMMEE – Kaleb Coleman is loving that winning feeling on the basketball court.

Just four months removed from helping top-ranked Oak Ridge win Florida’s Class 9A boys’ basketball high school state title, Coleman added to his list of accomplishments Sunday. He led Team M.O.A.M. 2019 to the AAU 17-and-under/11th-grade Super Showcase silver bracket championship at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney.

Coleman, a 6-foot-6 small forward, poured in 11 of his 13 points in the first quarter as Team M.O.A.M. (Man on a Mission) sprinted to a double-digit lead and never looked back en route to an easy 66-47 victory against Team Forrest of Atlanta.

Team M.O.A.M., sponsored by former Winter Park High and current NBA shooting guard Austin Rivers, finished the summer with a 29-4 record. That included a 7-1 mark in the Disney Showcase. The loss was in pool play against SYF of Indianapolis.

“It’s amazing, really,” Coleman said. “To come off a state championship and come in here and win it all. Lots of AAU games. It feels good.”

Coleman has been feeling some good vibes for most of 2018. He said colleges are showing interest now as he enters his senior year.

There were dozens of coaches on hand for Team M.O.A.M.’s third win on Sunday, a final in which Coleman rallied his team from a shaky start and an early 4-0 deficit. Utilizing explosive speed and tenacity on both ends of the floor, he scored a bucket off a steal to tie things at 4-4 and then later ripped off seven straight points, including a three-pointer, to push Team M.O.A.M. out front 13-6. It was 19-8 at the end of one quarter.

Coleman led all scorers at the half with 11 points.

“I think what a lot of schools like is his versatility,” said Team M.O.A.M. coach Therion “T.J.” Joseph. “Because he can guard two or three positions and he can play two or three positions. So, that makes him valuable as a basketball player.”

Coleman said Wofford, Lipscomb, Army, and Illinois State have shown serious interest. He said he is definitely considering Army because his mother is a veteran, having served in the Air Force for six years.

Getting a scholarship, though, is just one of his goals for the 2018-19 school year.

“I want to repeat the state championship,” said Coleman, who last season mostly came off the bench for a Pioneers team loaded with talent. He is projected as a starter this year.

As for personal goals, Coleman said: “I need to work on creating a shot for myself. Obviously, with this team, everybody plays off the ball and plays well together.

“It’s pass, pass, and catch. I feel like if I have my dribble, I’ll be able to make a move for the goal and I believe I can elevate my game to the next level.”

Coleman was one of nine players who scored Sunday on a deep and talented Team M.O.A.M. Melbourne High’s Max Fiedler, a 6-foot-10, 230-pound center who had his way against Team Forrest, led all scorers with 17 points. Apopka’s Nathan Louis added 10 points for the winners.

Nicholas Watson scored 16 points for Team Forrest, which trains out of Georgia Tech. Trevon Reddish and Jamiel Wright had eight points each for Team Forrest.

Max Fay/Orlando Sentinel

Apopka High's Nate Louis, shown shooting a free throw in a January home game against Leesburg, scored 10 points for balanced Team M.O.A.M. in its silver bracket final victory.

Apopka High's Nate Louis, shown shooting a free throw in a January home game against Leesburg, scored 10 points for balanced Team M.O.A.M. in its silver bracket final victory. (Max Fay/Orlando Sentinel)